When I first upgraded to Spotify Premium back in August, I was excited to try something new, but a little disappointed and apprehensive because it wasn’t as easy as I thought it was going to be. Change is never easy. But I kept at it and now I think I’m able to navigate it quite well. Creating and publishing playlists is the easy part. Muddling through all the little glitches with the system was a little tricky, but once I was able to figure them out, I rarely run into problems anymore. The difficult part, for me anyway, was finding people to follow and finding new music.
I don’t know about you, but I could spend hours listening to music and deciding if I think certain songs should earn a spot on my next playlist. When I first began using Spotify, I really didn't know where to begin. It wasn't like iTunes, (which I had been using forever), so I knew that I needed to find an easy way to use Spotify to get access to music that I could use in my classes. I didn't want to be tied to my computer all night searching for music because I couldn't navigate my way through this new terrain. I wanted to be able to easily find new releases and I wanted to see what other instructors were using in their playlists. So I set a goal to find some easy and time-saving ways to search for new music. I think I succeeded. Here are few tips to add to your arsenal or to help you if you’re just getting started:
Find people to follow and subscribe to their playlists. I explain this in detail in my last ICI/PRO post.
Don’t overlook the ‘What’s New’ Tab at the top left of your main sidebar on your profile screen. Click on this tab and you’ll find a customized page for you with new releases, top playlists, top tracks, trending playlists, and featured Spotify apps.
Subscribe to playlists that ‘refresh’. I have found a few playlists to subscribe to that help me to keep up with the best new releases as well as the hottest songs in the country at the moment. Here are a few that I subscribe to: Billboard Hot 100; New Release Tuesdays and New Releases on Spotify
And speaking of new releases, if you like to use them in your playlists, learn to love Tuesdays! Most of the new releases come out on Tuesdays, so check for updates on your main page and be the first one to listen!
‘Like' Spotify on Facebook. You'll get really great updates on new music and bands, helpful tips and general updates.
Sign up at Sharemyplaylist.com. I have not used this service as a means of sharing my playists (yet), but they DO email me a newsletter every week with seven of their top playlists, all of which have been published in Spotify. So with the click of a button, you can listen and subscribe. I can't say enough about this resource. I always find a TON of great music here.
In addition to the ideas mentioned above, I think in the not too distant future you may see some changes over at Spotify that will make your music discovery a little bit easier. Not only has Spotify overhauled their website, but they will very soon be unrolling some new and exciting changes. If you used iTunes Ping, you may find this to be a good replacement. See what it's all about by clicking the photo below:
How do you find music to use in your classes? If you have a great resource, please share in the comment section.
After some poking around and exploring, I think I have discovered the best way to find and follow other people on Spotify. Finding, following and adding people to your ‘favorites’ will in turn give you more music to explore and ultimately use in your cycling profiles.
Spotify has clearly not made the task of finding other people or cycling instructors to follow an easy one. If you were an iTunes Ping user, you remember how simple it was to find other instructors and to see their playlists and what they were purchasing and listening to. In Spotify you can do most of these things. You just have to work a little harder at it. Once you have found some people with similar musical tastes, you’ll find the process of searching for new music much simpler.
There are a few ways to go about searching for and finding people to follow in Spotify:
Since Spotify and Facebook are connected, you can follow friends that are already on Facebook. While this one is simple, it’s my least favorite option. First of all, you actually need to be ON Facebook. I realize that most of you probably are, but I’m sure there are some of you that either don’t have a Facebook account, or, like me, use it very sparingly. Another reason I’m not a fan of the Facebook method is because your Facebook friends may not be listening to the kind of music you want to use in your cycling playlists. You’re looking for other instructors with similar musical tastes. I suppose you could ‘friend’ all of the cycling instructors in the world on Facebook, but then you have a bunch of people you don’t even know looking at your personal Facebook page. If that doesn't bother you, then I guess using Facebook is one way to find friends to follow in Spotify.
The nearly impossible username trick. For some reason, I can rarely get this one to work. Why? Because I don’t know anyone’s user name! And even when I do, I don’t have much luck. (Hint: apparently it’s important to use all lowercase letters. ) Here’s the secret formula: http://open.spotify.com/user/yourusername So my profile code would be: http://open.spotify.com/user/chrispins
While the above mentioned techniques will surely work, I think I’ll stick with my highly un-scientific, yet effective (not to mention easy and fast) way to find people to follow on Spotify:
Find one person that has a playlist you like and head on over to their profile. Let’s use my profile to get you started: http://open.spotify.com/user/chrispins
Once you have arrived on my profile page, take a look at some of my ‘published’ playlists. Not only will you see my original playlists here, but you will also see playlists that I have subscribed to. These are playlists from other members. Here is a picture of part of one of my original playlists, posted on my profile page:
In the upper right corner of these profiles, you can click on the ‘subscribers' and a drop down list will appear with the profiles of all of the people that have subscribed to my playlist. There you go! 23 new people (mostly cycling instructors) to follow! Click on their names to go to their profile pages, and check out what they are publishing and subscribing to. If you like what you see, click ‘add’ in the upper right hand corner of their profile. This will allow you to see what they are listening to and publishing in a scrolling list on the side of your profile. Hint: After you click ‘add’, you will have an option to add them to your ‘favorites’. I recommend doing this because it allows you to access their profile even if they are not actively listening to or using Spotify at the same time that you are. Their latest activity will always be available in the upper right side of your profile.
Now that you have found some other profile pages, you can continue to explore the ‘followers’ of the playlists that they have published or subscribed to. Many people have not published many playlists, but have ‘subscribed’ to other people’s playlists. In this case, you can go directly to the profile of the person that created the original playlist by clicking their user name next to the playlist title as in this example: This is a partial shot of a playlist that I subscribed to by John MacGowan:
Just click on John's name next to the playlist title to go directly to his profile.
Here are some links with some basic tutorials that you might find useful:
So, what are you waiting for? Give yourself a little time and start exploring more music on Spotify. Once you start finding people to follow, you might find it hard to stop!
**Feel free to share your Spotify profile link in the comment section to get the ball rolling!
“I'm trained as an Instructor. I've earned multiple certifications, spent thousands of dollars and invested hundreds of hours, all with the purpose of delivering a great class to you today.”
“But many of you will probably judge me by my skills as a DJ… the one part of this class for which I have no formal education.”
It had to be the funniest thing I've ever heard said by another Instructor… well I thought it was funny, and I laughed out-loud when she said it during her opening of class. What made this humorous was a combination of her deadpan delivery and the unexpected honesty of her statement.
Could anything be more true about teaching an Indoor Cycling class?
To paraphrase the memorable line from a TV and radio commercial from Verbal Advantage; People judge you by the music you play…
In past surveys I've done, Instructors have said that they spend more time on music than any other aspect of their classes. I'm not sure this dependency on a great playlist, as the foundation of you class, is entirely healthy. But I can understand how it can become the focus of your class preparations.
So what's my suggestion for ensuring your class will enjoy your music selections?
Steal music ideas from others 😉
Here are a few places you can start:
Rolling Stone's Top 500 Songs of all Time. Especially if you have an older demographic, you can't go wrong with these past favorites. Most are so memorable that you could start a sing-a-long. Here's a link to the list and there's a partial list (385) you can find in Spotify.
Grab our list of the Top 404 Indoor Cycling Songs. These have been hand picked by other instructors and a class playlist created from them is a nearly guaranteed hit.
Subscribe to ICI/PRO where we have over 50 class playlists, created by experienced Instructors. Each playlist is tied to an easy to follow class profile that explains exactly how to teach the class; cues, timing – everything 🙂
Get the Shazam app for your iPhone or Droid and bring it to a popular Instructor's class. Shazam each song they play and the app will keep a list for you to “appropriate” into your playlist. Don't be surprised to catch an Instructor in your class doing this if you've followed suggestion #3
Consider a mixed class music service like indoorcyclingmusic.com A good DJ doesn't have gaps between songs – it wrecks the mood you want to create. If you don't have the hours to spend with MixMeister, this could really simplify your life 🙂
When we were investigating locations for the ICI/PRO Conference last spring I looked at what venues other Fitness Conventions were using. Long story short, I got to know Sara Kooperman who is the founder of the SCW Mania conventions. Beyond being a very successful business women, Sara is also a sought after speaker and fitness presenter.
Sara regularly presents her Guaranteeing Instructor Excellence in Your Facility workshop. I felt that a portion of this presentation would be of interest to you. D.R.I.L.L TO HELP US CUE AND BE CREATIVE
CREATIVITY by focusing on:
Direction
Rhythm
Intensity
Lever
Length
CUING: We are translators, people learn in different ways
Police will hear Direction
Musicians will hear Rhythm
Psychotherapists will hear Intensity
Lawyers will hear Levers
Accountants will hear Length
In the introduction of this episode Amy (the senior Group Fitness Instructor at ICI/PRO) describes her trip to the Global Ride Studios to film a number of Indoor Cycling classes for Cycling Fusion.
This Free Podcast is provided to you through a sponsorship from our friends at CyclingFusion.com
Listen to the Podcast below or subscribe for free using
Want to punch up your playlist with some of the best music on the planet AND get the inside scoop on how to teach each empowering song? Thanks to a suggestion from ICI/PRO member Charles Farrow of Montgomery, Alabama, we’re going to collect 100 of the BEST songs ever recorded along with coaching tips from YOU – the most passionate instructors in the world!
Think for a moment…what is your favorite song – that little gem that creates explosive energy and reaffirms your commitment to indoor cycling? Now, here comes the good stuff….how do you TEACH that magical song to encourage your students and help them squeeze out every last drop of effort?
We need your help to create this golden list of inspiration. I’ll kick it off with my top five songs and the rest is up to you! Simply reply to this post – ONE SONG per COMMENT. C’mon, send us your best! (Duplicate songs are welcome as long as the teaching method is different.)
Update: Comments are closed on this post and Barbara has compiled the list for you. We ended up with 161 and they are available free to subscribers of our email newsletter.
The list of 161 songs is old news. Have you seen our new: BEST 400 Indoor Cycling Songs list? It's free to subscribers to our email newsletter. Click here to join now.
When I first upgraded to Spotify Premium back in August, I was excited to try something new, but a little disappointed and apprehensive because it wasn’t as easy as I thought it was going to be. Change is never easy. But I kept at it and now I think I’m able to navigate it quite well. Creating and publishing playlists is the easy part. Muddling through all the little glitches with the system was a little tricky, but once I was able to figure them out, I rarely run into problems anymore. The difficult part, for me anyway, was finding people to follow and finding new music.
